From the world's oceans again come stories that are vital, interesting, or merely intriguing – stories to make you envious (if you're not already out there cruising while reading this), stories to learn from, stories to warm your heart.

Two of the best known rally organisations in the world have united, although it looks more like a takeover by the World Cruising Club of Steve Black's Caribbean 1500 Rally. Steve Black is to 'continue cruising and racing on his 42ft Simonis Sloop', so I wonder who has the better outcome, Black or World Cruising Club's Andrew Bishop? The cruising sailor in me votes for Steve Black!

Summer Sailstice is over, but the word is spreading and they even celebrated it in Shanghai this year. Two cruising yachts share their lives – one has been sailing round Corsica, and the other is in Borneo, and the contrast in experiences shows just what how good life can get when you throw off those dock lines.

British sailors are having a problem in Spain hanging on to their berths, and there's a warning out that piracy is moving through the Straits of Bab El Mandeb into the Red Sea.

When you're drifting along in light air there's very little you can do to avoid a speeding motorboat, but it's not often that you end up with half the motor boat's deck attached to the large hole they've just made in your hull. See the picture...

There's another Dinghy Danger reminder, and Grant Headifen is back with another tip, so browse through the many headlines to see what interests you

Sweet sailing!

Nancy Knudsen, Editor

Cruising Rally Association and World Cruising Club join forces World Cruising Club, Cruising Rally Association (CRA), best known as the organiser of the annual Caribbean 1500 Rally from Hampton VA to the British Virgin Islands, and World Cruising Club (WCC), organizers of the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC), from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to Saint Lucia, are joining forces to become the largest global organisation dedicated to the sport of passage-making.... [more]Share this story

Air Force praises well equipped yachties after South Pacific rescue New Zealand Defence Force., The crew of an Air Force Orion aircraft from No 5 Squadron have successfully located a yacht after a distress beacon alert was received by the NZ Rescue Coordination Centre (NZRCC). The Orion crew launched from Auckland Air Force Base during the early hours of this morning and arrived on station just before 10am..... [more]Share this story

Dinghy Danger Mark II Sail-World Cruising, Last week we published the story of the near tragedy when several small children were swept out to sea in a dinghy in a sharp off-shore breeze. A child who had been holding the painter let it go. Now a man's body has been found after the dinghy in which he and his friend were travelling - a rubber inflatable (RIB) - overturned in a river in Norfolk in the UK.... [more]Share this story

Drifting sailing boat T-boned by motor cruiser Bruce Burdett/Sail-World Cruising, There but for the Grace...A yacht in drifting air has no chance against a motor boat at speed, and the Beneteau that was T-boned by a motor yacht last week in Bristol UK, ended up with a large hole and a piece of the motor boat that hit them attached to the hull of the yacht.... [more]Share this story

Somali pirates move north towards the Red Sea Sail-World Cruising, Once cruising sailors had sailed the Gulf of Aden and reached the vicinity of the Strait of Bab el Mandeb, in reach of Red Sea waters, they would sigh with relief, as this was the sure signal that they had passed the dangerous pirate zone... but no more.... [more]Share this story

British sailors unite to save their Spanish berths Genus Marine, British sailors with a marina berth in Spain are being urged to contact their local Member of Parliament about the now tenuous situation of berth leasing in the sunny country.... [more]Share this story

Report of Chandler ransom part-paid, British Somalis to pay balance Des Ryan, An unconfirmed report says that a clan chief of the pirate gang holding kidnapped sailors Paul and Rachel Chandler has claimed that they have received over half the ransom being demanded.... [more]Share this story

Measuring your leeway for better sailing Grant Headifen, Leeway is just one of those things that is a law of the universe, just like gravity. Still with gravity – the advantage is that it's highly predictable. And so then is leeway. You will already know that leeway is the sideways slip motion of our sailboat down wind from the pressure of wind against our boat and sails, and always has to be taken into consideration.... [more]Share this story

WHOI Scientist takes look at Human Impacts on Ocean Chemistry WHOI, A marine geochemist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has published a report in the latest issue of the journal Science that evaluates the total impact of such factors on the ocean and considers what the future might hold.... [more]Share this story

Crystal Blues - tales from the Sungai Tulia River in Borneo Ley and Neil Langford, Neil and Ley Langford continue with their tales of cruising in Borneo on their yacht Crystal Blues:Crystal Blues is anchored on the very peaceful Sungai Tulia, and the sun is just peeping through the open hatches.... [more]Share this story

Abby Sunderland, the end of one dream but maybe on to the next... Sail-World Cruising, Sixteen-year-old Californian sailor Abby Sunderland has finally been reunited with her brother Zac on Saturday on Reunion Island. Zac was substituting for her father, who has remained by his wife's side as she expects their eighth baby any time soon. On arrival in Reunion, she defended her family against criticism that she had been too young to try to sail around the world alone.... [more]Share this story

Cruising with La Boheme - the Island of Corsica Anna Haremza on La Boheme, Cruising sailors Anna and Gregory Haremza here describe their cruise around Corsica, sailing on their 53ft ketch Amel Super Maramu 2000, La Boheme. Coming from the Ile de Porquerolles on Cote d'Azure, we sailed into Calvi, Corsica. We had left our yacht for winter in Guissan, so we thought that this would be a very convenient and pleasant stop over.... [more]Share this story

Summer Sailstice in Shanghai Alistair Skinner, While some in Europe and the US were still thinking about going to bed the day before the Sailstice (the wonders of time zones!) a small but intrepid band slipped out of the marina at Saimeng Water Sports Club on Dianshan Lake, Shanghai, with nav lights glowing.... [more]Share this story

A thank you from Burke Marine Colin Burgess, We have had a fantastic response to the recent Bosun chair recall resulting in a large amount of items returned to our factory for intensive load testing and inspection. Your cooperation has been very much appreciated and we hope that any inconvenience was limited.... [more]Share this story

New marina enhances services for Turkish cruising waters Lisa Mylchreest, Cruising in Turkey has long been one of the highlights of any cruising sailor's dreams. Whether you sail your own boat there, keep it there, or merely charter occasionally, there are endless opportunities along the coast for idyllic cruising. However, the further north west you sail, the fewer the full service marinas. Now Camper and Nicholson have remedied that, with a marina in the delightful... [more]Share this story

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